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TWO-WAY STREET: Engagement comes as much from the employer as the employee. Each party has a responsibility in the matter. ADVANCE photo
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The best way to drive employee engagement is for managers to accentuate the positive in employee performance. The second best engagement approach is to focus performance discussions on employee weaknesses. Worst choice: provide no feedback at all.
This is the summary of "The Relationship Between Engagement at Work and Organizational Outcomes," a recent Gallup Inc. report that interviewed more than 1,000 U.S. employees.
Engagement in the laboratory not only sets you aside from coworkers, but can help in immeasurable ways. An engaged employee is fully involved in, and enthusiastic about, his work. It is clear he cares about the institution's future and is willing to invest effort beyond the minimum required, to ensure the organization succeeds.
Good Business
The engagement level in any organization is the sum of employees' degree of positive or negative emotional attachment to their organization, job and colleagues.
Employees feel more engaged when they feel their organization provides:
- effective leadership (e.g., support, clear communication, credibility, fairness);
- work-life balance;
- a good match between the employee's skills/interests and the organizational mission (win/win); and
- support (e.g., the organization cares about the employee as an individual and also ensures the employee has the tools/authority to do the work required).
Engaged employees are more productive, stay with the company longer, have a more positive outlook and have less absenteeism.
Business leaders should care about employee engagement because, when correctly measured, engagement profiles provide management with a statistically valid method to maximize return on human capital. Simply put, engagement means good business.
Let's take a closer look at two clinical lab professionals and compare their levels of engagement.
Case Study No. 1: Kathy
Kathy does what is required of her, arrives at her department on time but does not volunteer for any extra work. She watches the clock and makes sure she takes lunch on time and any breaks allowed.
She will quote policy or the treatment of other employees to justify whatever she wants. If it's allowed by policy or someone else has benefited, she wants it!
When there's change, she immediately suspects it is motivated by corporate greed and wonders aloud how it will negatively affect employees. While she is not always the source of gossip, she encourages negatively and does not actively provide solutions.
She is the sort of employee often described as "simply along for the ride."
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